troops and their families. "newsroom" begins right now. good morning to you. i'm carol costello. thank you for joining us this morning. mitt romney is standing by his decision to attend a vegas fund-raiser with donald trump today even though the real estate mogul won't let go of the birther issue. trump is again questioning where president obama was born. he first raised the issue a year ago. you know, back when he was running for president. >> barack obama should end this. he should provide the public with a birth certificate. if he doesn't do it, he's doing a tremendous disservice to the public. >> trump harped on the issue for such a long time that for the first time in american history, an american president produced his long form birth certificate. trump still hasn't put the issue to arrest but romney welcomes his support. joining me now is cnn senior political analyst ron

brownstein. hi, ron. >> good morning. >> the obama campaign is hitting back with a new campaign ad going after romney about this controversy. let's watch a bit of it. >> i have read about him. he's an arab. >> no, ma'am. no, ma'am. he's a decent family family citizens that i just happen to have disagreements with. >> why doesn't he show his birth certificate? he doesn't have a birth certificate. he may have someone but there's something on there. maybe religion. maybe it says he's a muslim. >> okay. i was going to ask you if this was effective but i'll ask you this question instead. should mitt romney come out and say, donald trump is absolutely completely wrong about this birther issue. >> you would expect it. part of the job of being president is being president of the whole country and that includes saying no to your own party at times. one thing that mitt romney has been throughout this primary season is very reluctant to pick

a fight on the right. when rick santorum got up and said challenge the separation of church and state and said john kennedy made him sick, mitt romney was silent whith the contraception issue. he's reluctant to challenge the right and whether conservatives would rise against him. the portrait makes you look kind of weak. >> mitt romney came out and said, i need 50.1% of the vote. i need money to win. i need all of the support i can get. i'm not going to agree with all of your supporters. i certainly don't agree with that part of donald trump's mantra. >> that's fine as far as it goes. when you think about where this election is going to be decided, both parties have a solid base. portion of the republican party and there is a significant minority of the republican party who agrees with donald trump's

questioning although seemingly the issue has been settled. the issue is going to be decided fundamentally by voters who tend to be college educated suburban voters who may be economically or ideologically disappointed with president obama after 2008 but are reluctant to turn over power to the republicans either because they say it is too ied lonl cal or intolerant or extreme and by not separating himself from these sentiments, romney adds another hurdle with voters outside of philadelphia and outside of detroit are the kind of voters he's going to need. >> ron brownstein, thank you for joining us this morning. we appreciate it. >> thank you, carol. first lady michelle obama is on a tv tear. this morning on good morning america and later to "the view" and then to "the daily show with jon stewart." she'll talk about growing gardens and raising healthier children. that's what she talked about on

"good morning america." >> let's move is a way of giving people the tools and information and it really requires everybody to step up. we need our mayors stepping up. restructuring cities so kids have safer places to play. we need our food manufacturers stepping up and really thinking about how to reformulate food products so they are a little more healthy and affordable. >> mr. obama gave an interview to "people" magazine telling the world intimate details of the president's nighttime ritual. we have a ritual where he tucks me in because i'm in bed before anything. he's ready to be tucked? i'm, like, yes, i am. you can read more in "people" magazine online. we heard the president brag about the uptick in manufacturing jobs.

manufacturing employment has seen a revival but -- it's a big but -- employers are able to hire for a reason. they're not paying workers as much as before. "the wall street journal" reports wages are not keeping up with inflation and in fact average pay for a manufacturing job is about $19 an hour which is what workers made back in the year 2000, 12 years ago. alison kosik is at the new york stock exchange. there's more than one reason this is not so good. >> lower wages have a big ripple effect. when you make less money, it impacts every day life. the vacations you take or what kind of cars or houses that people buy or what schools people's kids go to. it also hits stores. it hits restaurants. the places that these workers go to to spend their money. what you see is this lower wages and that lower wages ripple through the economy. let me go back and tell you what's happening. getting a manufacturing job decades ago, this was a sure bet

way back when. a stable middle class life. things have changed. now what manufacturers are doing is using a two-tier wage system. older workers keep higher pay. new hires come in at a lower rate. let me give you an example of automaker general motors. new workers there make $19 an hour. that's actually a bump up from the low of $14 in 2007 but look at what older workers make. they make from $28 to $38 an hour and interestingly enough, this comes as the auto industry is rebounding. now, what these automakers are trying to do is they really want to stay strong. they need to keep these salaries competitive and what it does is give them room to open jobs here and hire. carol? >> it's sort of like a double edge sword at the moment since the economy is bad, neither side can really win. >> exactly. think of it this way. keeping wages lower makes u.s.

manufacturers more competitive. they are able to keep their costs down to compete with those overseas companies and it allows them to actually move jobs overseas here and open up new jobs here. something that we desperately need. but in order to do that, they have to remain competitive and keep those wages low. it's a double edge sword. >> the big picture doesn't look so rosy. that's the other side of it. here's a look at other stories we're following for you this morning. we're on a verdict watch in the edwards corruption trial. jurors are beginning their seventh day of deliberations. edwards is charged with accepting illegal campaign contributions, falsifying documents and conspiracy for trying to hide his affair during his 2008 bid for the white house. after nearly 15 hours, a standoff on a construction crane is now over. there's a man who climbed up the crane on monday on the campus of southern methodist university trying to avoid arrest, claimed he had a weapon. this morning it all ended

trag tragically. he fell 150 feet to his death. he stole a truck and ended on ca campus. hot chunks of metal rained down on cars on monday shattering windshields. the engine failed after takeoff from toronto. the flight made an emergency landing and no injuries except to cars reported. parts of the southeast getting hammered by what's left of beryl today after hitting the coast the storm is moving inland. flash floods are expected in georgia, north carolina, and south carolina over the next 48 hours. wind and rain wasn't the only thing beryl kicked up. there's also been a rash of shark sightings since the storm hit. >> when the waves were really nice and glassy, i saw a very large at least seven foot or so shark. very close to my surfboard. it was a little unnerving.

>> i paddle away from where i've seen them in a different direction. sometimes i lay on my board and keep feet out of the water. i'm not too scared to come in. >> there have been no injuries from sharks. 13 people have distinguished themselves in their field. madeleine albright, pat summitt, among those receiving the presidential medal of freedom at the white house. brianna keilar is in washington. so happy for john glenn. i met him so many times. what a gentleman and many say an american hero. >> reporter: it's a big honor. the highest civilian honor handed out and by the white house it's kind of similar to the congressional honor handed out but some of these names you said you definitely recognize. john glenn, first american to

orbit earth. he was among other achievements the oldest american in space at 77. tony morrison, renowned author will receive this award. there are also some names that maybe won't roll off your tongue as quickly as others. william faggie eradicated smallpox and gordon will be awarded for challenging an order to evacuate to an internment camp. japanese american. during world war ii he challenged that to the supreme court which ruled against him and it wasn't until 1987 that criminal charges were basically rescinded and then i think sort of my favorite, juliette gordon lowe, the founder of girl scouts

will receive this award. >> brianna keilar, thanks. i know you'll cover the ceremony later this afternoon and it will air live on cnn. those cubs fans and their goat wrigley reached chicago. we told you about these guys yesterday on a 2,000 mile trek with missions to raise money for cancer research and break the curse of the cubs. just to remind you. a tavern owner was thrown out of wrigley field at the 1945 world series because of his stinky pet goat. he brought the goat with him to the game. the tavern owner said the cubs would never again win a world series and guess what? they have not since. the modern day cub fans think their pet goat will reverse the curse. >> it's about respecting the goat and the hike is about 2,000 miles but raise money for cancer research and letting the goat see all of the different parts of the country like route 66, the goat has helped us raise

over $20,000 close to $25,000 now and cubs will make a donation today so to me that's just respecting the goat and that's part of the curse was not respecting the goat. >> such a calm goat. the cubs do have game this afternoon. we'll see if they let wrigley into wrigley. we'll keep you posted. the tsa wants more of your money. they want to get this double security fee on most airlines. you pay for that. in your airline ticket. we'll tell you about an unlikely alley for passengers.

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for me, it's really about building this extraordinary community. american express is passionate about the same thing. they're one of those partners that i would really rely on whether it's finding new customers, or, a new location for my next restaurant. when we all come together, my restaurants, my partners, and the community amazing things happen. to me, that's the membership effect. 16 mississippi past the hour. northern italy on edge after a earthquake kills at least ten people.

nine days ago the quake struck the same region killing seven people. we're going to survive this. that's what a husband and father in idaho said right after the small plane he was piloting slammed into a mountain. he was right. brian brown, his wife, jan, and their daughter, heather, are injured but they are expected to be okay. immediately after the crash, heather calmly called 911. >> because of the rough terrain and bad weather it took 15 hours for a chopper to finally rescue them. mitt romney isn't backing down from his decision to attend a vegas fund-raiser with donald trump today. even though the real estate mogul will not let go of the president obama birther issue. when asked about it, romney says

he's grateful for all his supporters. he says he doesn't agree with all of them but i need to get 50.1%. baggage fee, reservation fee, seat assignment fee, security fee, it seems fees on airline tickets keep getting higher and higher. added and added. now the tsa wants to double one of those fees. here's lizzie o'leary. >> reporter: take two things that many travelers love to hate. the tsa and ticket fees. now add them together. >> what is it that's prompting them to ask for more money? >> reporter: the agency backed by democrats in the senate wants to increase the security fee everyone pays with a ticket from $2.50 a flight to $5 per one-way ticket. $10 round trip. >> ten is pushing it to a limit. i mean, i guess it's only $5 more but i'm wondering, you know, how that fits in with they already have a budget. >> reporter: tsa's budget like many in washington is set to be cut. the agency says boosting this

fee would help cover the increasing price of security, like those costly scanners. the fee hasn't been hiked in ten years. >> straight over here. >> reporter: a powerful lobby is pushing against it. airlines. they don't want the cost shifted to their customers. >> air security is a national security function. it's something that all of us need to be behind as americans and the government should pick up the cost of that. >> reporter: many travelers we talked to didn't mind. >> i would say it's like using a toll road. if you use a toll road, you pay the toll. >> reporter: they want to know it's money well spent. >> does increasing the fee increase the level of security tsa can provide? >> it means that tsa's budget will be a little less likely to get cut just to save money in the overall deficit reduction effort. so in that regard, it's useful.

it's also useful if you can tell where the benefits go for a particular program, then the people who get the benefits generally should pay for it. >> there's a big political fight over this fee. senate democrats voted to support it last week. house republicans are dead set against it. they have got to figure out how to square those two approaches before the tsa can be funded. lizzie o'leary, cnn, washington. radiation is showing up in tuna off the west coast. we'll tell you what scientists are saying about it. don't forget if you're heading out the door, take us with you. go to cnn.com/tv. as a culinary manager i make sure our guests have an over the top experience. being hands on is key! i make sure every plate looks just right. [ male announcer ] don't miss red lobster's four course seafood feast, just $14.99. start with soup, salad and unlimited cheddar bay biscuits

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flame. a spy better than james bond and way more dangerous. flame is not human but a computer virus that it can takeover a computer and turn it into your enemy. wow. zain verjee is live in london to tell us more about flame.

>> scary, right, carol? this is a virus totally designed to spy on you and me and other people that are way more important than you and me. basically what it does is the following. it kind of signals a way that maybe this is going to be the war of the future really. here's what it can do. apparently it can turn on mic microphones in your computer or iphone and record your whole conversation. when you have instant message conversations with your friends or between officials or countries or governments, those instant messages can be copied and it can get into different files and delete data in a mass way and then it can grab screen shots from your computer so whatever you have up, it can go in there and take a snap of it and do things also like recording your skype calls and things like that. it's scary. it would be a national security threat as well. now, apparently computers only in the middle east have been

affected. iran mainly and countries like syria and egypt as well. the big question everyone is asking is who is behind it? it's not really clear what the answer to that is. today there was one israeli official that hinted israel has the capability of creating this flame-like virus and capacity to do it but they didn't say they were doing it. it is something to look out for. it's something to be concerned about and it's something just to keep our eye on because this could really develop to other parts of the world. >> i was going to ask you. it hasn't spread west yet, huh? >> not according to the reports that we're seeing. what i did see today earlier there were experts that said for the last two years most of this gathering of information has really been only limited to the middle east. if it's in the united states, we don't know about it yet. and it would probably be only a matter of time because it's the internet and cybersecurity and that's a whole different ball

game all together. >> zain verjee live in london for us. thanks. now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. the question for you this morning, why won't the birther thing die? mitt romney will be benefiting from a big-time fund-raiser today in las vegas and guess who is hosting that fund-raiser? the donald. donald trump. the most famous birther in america. who can forget at the height of his pseudo presidential campaign when trump questioned president obama's birth's place. >> barack obama should end this and he should provide the public with a birth certificate. if he doesn't do it, he's doing a tremendous disservice to the public. >> he harped on it so long and so hard that president obama finally said enough and showed his birth certificate to the nation. it's not like the birther issue ever really died. last week arizona's attorney

general apologized for threatening to leave the president off the ballot unless hawaii authenticated their birth certificate. and now here's mitt romney campaigning with trump. the whole birther thing doesn't seem to really bother him. >> you know, i don't agree with the people that support me and my guess is they don't agree with everything i believe in. i need to get 50.1% or more and appreciative to get help of good people. >> former mccain adviser calls birtherism a fringe issue and says in the middle of the electorate people think it's bats crazy. why don't the birther thing die? cnn.com/carolcnn. i'll read comments later this hour. america's largest group of nuns rebuked by the vatican and

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dude, those guys are pros. they'll hook you up with a solid plan. they'll -- wa-- wa-- wait a minute. bobby? bobby! what are you doing, man? i'm speed dating! for your family at e-trade. you hear opening bell on wall street. hopes that greece might get out of eurozone could give stocks a boost today and news china might announce a stimulus package for its slowing economy to help lift investor confidence. mitt romney is downplaying donald trump's birther comment about president obama. romney says he believes that president obama was born in hawaii. the re-election campaign is calling romney out for not condemning trump's claim. a radioactive tuna was caught off the coast of

california last summer. scientists say the tuna is still safe to eat but want to test this year's catch to see if there's more radiation poisoning. hot chunks of metal raining down on cars monday knocking out several windshields. authorities think those chunks fell off an air canada plane. its engine failed shortly after takeoff from toronto. no injuries except to the cars have been reported. it is a showdown although a prayerful one between catholic nuns and the vatican. the religious are meeting in washington to determine how nuns will respond to allegations of radical feminism. they claim nuns fight to the poor but not contraception and same-sex marriage. the church is demanding major reforms. sister marie fielder is host of a public radio show that worked

for social justice and gender equality issues for many, many years. sister, welcome. >> thank you. good to be here, carol. >> glad to have you. i'll ask you a tough first question. aren't you kind of radical feminist nun the bishops are concerned about? >> i had to laugh when i read that part of the document. if these men really want to beat radical feminist i can introduce them to them. i don't think the women of lcw are that. i'm a feminist. i believe in fundamental equality of women and men, which by the way the second vatican council does as well. it says and i'm quoting "every type of discrimination based on sex is to be overcome and eradicated as contrary to god's intent." >> you say i'm a feminist. doesn't that mean you're not a good catholic in the bishop's eyes? >> absolutely not. i don't think you can be a good catholic and not be a feminist

and not be someone who believes in the fundamental equality of the genders. >> that's not what the bishops are saying? >> actually, i think if you scratch the surface and talk to a lot of bishops, particularly those who have not joined this recent lawsuit on the contraceptive issue and there are most that have not joined, there is a lot of dissent. doesn't always make it publicly. >> i know what leadership conference of women religious and fathering of nation's nuns will pray for a solution but you know women attending this conference. are they angry enough to consider splitting from the vatican and turning orders into nonprofits and working with the poor on their own? >> i don't think that quite is the issue. i think there's a possibility. it has been suggested by some former leaders that lcwr, the

leadership council, the elected leaders of nuns in america to become a nonprofit on their own. that's one of the ideas on the table so to speak. i do think they are going to go about this thoughtfully, prayerfully and intelligently which is the way they have always gone about business. >> the catholic church is on a mission, 40 some catholic universities are suing over obama care, catholics are investigating the nuns, the girl scouts, what's next do you suppose? >> i don't know. i keep saying is it puppies and kittens next, you know. what's really at stake here in larger significance of this is the future of the church. whether we're going to go back to the old church before the second vatican council, which was male and not collaborative and obsessed with issues of sexuality or go forward with what second vatican council called us to which was collaborative leadership and

dialogue and a church where they have a place and a place where social justice issues are in the forefront of the agenda that we're carrying forward. i think they want the second. i think it would be a tragedy for the american church if they ever went back to that old model. unfortunately that's represented in this vatican document. >> sister, thank you for joining us this morning. >> thank you so much. it's good to be here. >> two the biggest pop stars go at it again. madonna versus gaga with madge pulling the first punch this time. oh, we call it the bundler. let's say you need home and auto insurance. you give us your information once, online... [ whirring and beeping ]

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>> madonna is going after laida gaga again. during a rehearsal madonna covered a gaga sound. "showbiz tonight's" a.j. hammer has the video. it's interesting. >> madonna has always laughed out questions she's gotten about lady gaga sounding like her and acting like her over the years particularly when gaga's "born this way" came out and people thought it sounded like "express yourself." someone was shooting this rehearsal sand this is what the saw if you can pull that full. ♪

>> if you think maybe madonna was mixing it up as a tribute to lady gaga and the great song. they finishes the song by singing "she's not me." clear to me it's a dig. i can't help think even though this was done at a sound check and not annual concert, madonna is smart enough to know in this day in age if you do anything controversial, it will get out there and people will talk about it. >> sounds exactly like the same song. it's amazing. i enjoyed listening. moving on now, you'll tell us about kids stars who say they were bullied. >> you may remember from the show "sister sister" all grown up but they say classmates in high school bullied and made fun of them. at one point they were called the buckwheat twins at school but said they had a good

comeback. >> i will never forget a kid screamed down the hall and he said, your show sucks just like that. out loud in front of all of the kids. i said you know what, i'm sick and tired of this. i'm going to say something. i turned around and i said, well, the checks don't. >> he shut up. >> he sure did. >> it worked. >> so i can see in high school that would totally shut anybody down trying to bully you. >> very definitely so. a.j. hammer, thank you. a.j. will be back with us next hour with more showbiz headlines including the king's former resting place. elvis's original crypt up for auction. down south gulf coast residents affected by the 2010 bp oil spill are about to benefit from $18.7 million worth of health related projects. we'll tell you about that. cream... a touch of sugar...

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campaign is calling romney out for not condemning trump's claim and beryl is dropping a foot of rain in some areas as it moves across florida and georgia and creating dangerous surf conditions including rip currents as far north as north carolina. cnn's george howell is in georgia. not raining yet. >> reporter: we are starting to feel the rain here just a few miles to the west of us in savannah. it's raining there. the big concern is flooding. obviously in jacksonville we're starting to see that. in jekyll island north of jacksonville starting to see the same thing. this area was suffering from drought conditions a year ago and now with a slow moving star dropping rain in a short amount of time there's a concern about flooding. officials are keeping a close eye on rivers and flash flood watches have been issued for this area as the storm slowly

moves through this city. >> george howell reporting live for us this morning. thank you. we asked you to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. the question why won't this birther thing die? facebook.com/carolcnn. we'll have your responses on the other side of the break. in here, great food demands a great presentation. so at&t showed corporate caterers how to better collaborate by using a mobile solution, in a whole new way. using real-time photo sharing abilities, they can create and maintain high standards, from kitchen to table. this technology allows us to collaborate with our drivers to make a better experience for our customers. [ male announcer ] it's a network of possibilities -- helping you do what you do... even better. ♪ mine was earned off vietnam in 1968. over the south pacific in 1943. i got mine in iraq, 2003. usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation.

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we asked you to talk back on

the big stories of the day. the question this morning, why won't this birther thing die. from colleen, because it plays to common people fears and don't have focus on real issues if they can rally troops over a fringe issue. this from nancy. because mitt romney is desperate and wants to get that 50.1% by any means necessary. this is from john. because president obama won'tne. because president obama won't put an end to it. from gary. because some people will continue to believe what they want to believe regardless of of whether it makes sense or evidence to the contrary. this from stephen. can we call this duck like we see it? that is racist. trump feels he accomplished something by asking the president to see his papers and he did. he proved that he is a racist. keep the conversation going. facebook.com/carolcnn. we're following a lot of developments in the next hour. let's check in with reza sayah. >> another report of an alleged

assassination plot linked to iran. it sounds scary, it sounds bad but does it have substance? or is it part of what many call the iran hysteria? that story at the top of the hour. >> i'm alison kosik at the new york stock exchange. after a fiasco of an ipo, there's a new head of facebook. the company reportedly planning to make a smartphone. not everyone thinks it's a good idea. more on that in the next hour. >> thanks to both of you. the same group that said men should not get regular prostate screenings releasing guidelines for postmenopausal women and which should take hormone replacement therapy. and which should avoid it. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] not everything powerful has to guzzle fuel.

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the umpire calls it a foul tip and says the ball hit the ground. the ump blew the call. see jim leyland arguing. he's really good at arguing, too. but he loses the argument as they always do and yes he gets tossed. after the game, the tigers lost, leyland told reporters to call them like they see them. >> this should not have not been a second inning. it was three outs. when the catcher catches the ball and strike three, you call the guy out. there should not have been a rally in that inning. anybody that saw that, have the nerve to write what you say it. have the nerve to say something. >> i'm a tigers fan and i agree with you, jim leyland. a happier story now from the ballpark. the family of master sergeant dave sims watching a video tribute to him. there he is! he ran on to the field. the afghanistan war vet was not home in six months. oh. simms said he's no proud of what

his wife has done, taking care of the kids while he's been away. simms calls her my hero. that's a look at sports today. can you spell precocious? 6-year-old lori ann madison can and she is. she is the youngest to qualify for the national spelling bee. going up against kids twice her age. to her, it's no big deal. >> honestly, it's not as big and i'm not really excited like -- i'm going to the national spelling bee. i'm more like, it's fine. i want to be an astro biologist. i like astronomy and biology and i'm aiming to be in the swimming part of the olympics. >> wow. first things first, though. the spelling bee begins today. what's on your bucket list? for an 81-year-old, it's achieving great heights but she got a scare. here's mary snow.

>> reporter: la vern's adventure started with smiles. >> i just turned 80. >> happy birthday. >> thank you. >> is this something you've always wanted to do? >> 30 years. >> reporter: la vern is shrugging off terrifying moments of the sky dive that was videotaped. when it was time to jump, she looks like she doesn't want to get out of the plane but told station kovr that wasn't the case. that her bad knees gave out. >> some people look at the video think she's being forced out of that plane. >> no. no. i don't look at it this way. he knew how bad i wanted to jump. >> reporter: once she and the instructor did jump, it was clear something went very wrong. the upper harness came off. i didn't know anything. only to hold on. that's all. >> reporter: the parachute opened and she landed safely. but that video has taken off. going viral. >> this is a couple of seconds? >> this is a matter of seconds. >> felt like a lifetime? >> it did. >> reporter: kenny owns a sky

diving company in new jersey. he says it's hard to know what went wrong but it appears he says from the start that the harness wasn't secured properly an he says while scary, this kind of thing happening is rare. >> as you exit the plane, it is in a stable manner. you know? per what we're trained and the manufacturer recommends and requires, you know, we are stable within five seconds and the parachute is out. he was having difficulty. >> reporter: we contacted the company where la vern did the sky dive. a representative told us that the video is over a year old and would only say no one got hurt abe the landing was fine. as for la vern, she says at the time of the dive, she didn't even know exactly what happened because her shirt had covered her face. and now she's seeking another adventure. >> i have never ridden in a race car. >> reporter: while la vern moved on, the faa is looking in to the dive and the california company behind it since learning about the video late last week. separately, faa says that it's

already proposed $900,000 in civil penalties against the parachute center for violations unrelated to the dive. when asked about the fines, the company said it had no comment. mary snow, cnn, new york. >> i like her style. what a brave and courageous woman. wow. the next hour of "cnn newsroom" starts right now. good morning to you. i'm carol costello happening now. mitt romney not backing away the birther accusations. romney says he believes president obama was born in hawaii so why woun't he publicl correct the supporter? beryl, drawing sharks so close. how long will they hang around? facebook planning a cell phone. mark zuckerburg wants a facebook phone in your hands by next year but many in the tech world think

that's not a great move. why is facebook pursuing this? but we begin this morning with an alarming threat against u.s. officials abroad. embassy workers said to be among the targets of iran-linked asass n nation plots. reza sayah is following the reports. tell whaus you know. >> reporter: we need to be careful looking at the article because the headline is dramatic and gets your attention but the article itself leaves another -- a lot of unanswered questions. this is another in a long line of scary-sounding articles of plots linked to iran but this article doesn't clearly explain what that link is, if any, to the iranian government and lacks a lot of facts and verified information. briefly, the article claims a citizen of the country north of iran is working with operatives inside iran, although it doesn't

clarify if those operatives are iranian, they're working together allegedly to smuggle in weapons inside asser bah sheer and go after diplomats says it's linked to other alleged iranian plots. the article doesn't provide an iota of clear evidence that links this plot to the iranian government or groups tied to the iranian government. doesn't name a single iranian allegedly involved in this plot. it doesn't say who ordered the plot and it goes so far as to say not even the obama administration has tied this plot to the iranian government. so a lot of questions and you have unnamed sources, no attributions which raises a lot of questions if this is a serious plot, you would certainly like to have one named official in washington step forward and this article doesn't do that so a lot of questions although it makes some serious claims and allegations, carol. >> talk about serious claims.

i mean, why are we talking about this report if we can discount most of it? is it makes waves over there? >> reporter: well, it's not making waves over here but it's certainly making waves in washington because it appears in "the washington post" and it's written by a reputtable author. if nuclear issue being the matter of most importance. it's a fact that many people in washington, especially those who are hawkish when it comes to iran and want to portray iran as a threat, are going to enjoy seeing these types of stories. but still, threat assessment when it comes to iran at this point is more crucial than ever and the only way to assess threats coming from iran is with facts and verified information. when you look at this article, unfortunately, it lacks it. >> reza sayah reporting live for us this morning. back home, parts of the

southeast hammered by what's left of beryl, moving inland where flash floods are expected in georgia, north carolina and south carolina over the next 48 hours. powerful winds knocked out power across some areas on monday. temporary closing roads and bridges but rain wasn't the only thing beryl kicked up. there's a rash of shark sightings since beryl hit. the ocean rescue says there's no reports of injuries from the sharks. meteorologist rob marciano is tracking the storm for us. at last check, it was beginning to rain hard in savannah, georgia. >> yes. if eastern coast of georgia and northeast florida seeing most of the heavy rain right now. all the rain on the east side of that and seeing the center drift further to the east at 5 or so miles per hour. it's held together rather well being over land. still a tropical depression and then towards savannah. the rain shield is down from the savannah river down south towards almost tampa and some rain heavy at times and pockets

of flash flooding and we have seen pockets of heavier rain. this near tallahassee, florida. over 12 inches of rain and so there's been enough heavy rain to cause flash flooding and for the most part, this area has seen a tremendous amount of drought. the rain continues to spread off to the east and the north. the carolinas, low country with several inches of rainfall from this and a large swath of flash flood watches posted for 36 to 48 hours. 3 to 6 inches of rainfall as the next storm turns off to the north an east. here's the forecast path. over savannah and charleston and then offshore, paralleling the coastline for the most part and intensifying and then by then the jet stream and this front picks it up and pushes it out to sea and will cool things down for the northeast. seeing record-breaking temperatures and severe storms breaking out right now across the ohio river valley and sneaks in to upstate new york and

western pennsylvania throughout the day today. keeping an eye on rough weather there. back to you. >> thank you, rob. to michigan's upper peninsula, 34 homes, a hotel and a store have been destroyed by fire. in all, 97 structures are just gone. 22,000 acres are burned and the wildfire's only about 51% contained. also a deadly earthquake rattled northern italy today. the second to hit the region in just over a week. at least 12 people are dead by with the quake. a number of buildings damaged last week. there's talk of a facebook phone in the works. alison kosik is at the new york stock exchange with details for us. hi, alison. >> hi, carol. facebook is looking to release a new smartphone next year. we began hearing the rumors a month or two ago about facebook possibly doing this.

we're getting more details from the "the new york times" and some include that facebook looks to be poaching or hiring some former apple engineers who worked on the iphone. now, facebook, it's not saying much at this point except for saying, you know what? working across the entire mobile industry with operators, hardware manufacturers, os developers and critics are saying, not a great idea. they're saying that facebook has no experience in the hardware business and they say there are many ways for this whole thing to go wrong. carol? >> yeah. but it could be a good idea in the end. you don't know how it will turn out. they don't know how it turns out. >> think about eight years ago when mark zuckerburg said i want to make it the facebook. look how famously popular it's begun. critics are saying there's competition out there. look at google. they bought motorola mobility and could make it easier for google to make its own

smartphone and the arena, look at it. saturated with android and apple phones. the critics are saying, why is there a need for a separate facebook phone? you can still get facebook as an app on those iphones and android phones. why would anyone want a dedicated facebook phone? the critics say what facebook really needs at this point is to find new ways to make money and they're not so sure this could be the way to go. carol? >> interesting. alison kosik live at the new york stock exchange. coming up, talking about mitt romney and the fund-raiser in las vegas hosted by donald trump. some critics say romney should denounce trump's birther claims. every time a local business opens its doors or creates another laptop bag or hires another employee, it's not just good for business,

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romney's hitting the trail today in two western battleground states. the first stop in craig, colorado, that will happen in the next hour and then he heads to vegas to attend a fund-raiser hosted by real estate mogul donald trump. moments ago, fox news aired part of an interview with romney talking about what he needs to do to win over undecided voters in those battleground states. >> i can make the economy better. i can get more jobs in america. i can get competition between employers for jobs, rising wages. i understand how the economy works. the president wants to make this a personal attack campaign. he's going after me as an individual. look. i'm an american. i love this country. i have experience in the economy that's going to happen me get good jobs for americans so we can be secure again. >> well, romney is talking about the economy, others are talking about the decision to attend that vegas fund-raiser hosted by donald trump. even though trump hasn't let go

of the birther issue. he's once again questioning where president obama was born. trump harped on that issue for such a long time that for the first time in history an american president produced the long form birth certificate. romney welcomes trump's support. i talked about that with cnn senior political analysis ron brown steen. >> part of the job of being president is being president to the whole country. mitt romney has been throughout the primary season is very reluctant to pick a fight on the right. when rick santorum said john kennedy made him sick, mitt romney was silent when rush limbaugh attacked the georgetown student, mitt romney said, well, i wouldn't use that -- that's not the language i would use. he's been very mild. there's a pattern here where he's seemed reluctant to challenge if right and concerned of conservatives to rise up against him in some ways and the

cumulative portrait makes you look kind of weak. >> but still, i mean, mitt romney came out and said, hey, i need 50.1% of the vote. i need money to win and the support to get. i'm not to agree with all the supporters and i don't agree with that part of donald trump's mantra but i need his support to win. >> that's fine as far as it goes but, carol, if you think about where this election will be decided, both parties have a pretty solid base. the portion of the republican portion and a significant minority of the republican party and agrees with donald trump's questioning and seemingly the issue is settled, the issue is going to be decided i think fundamentally by voters who are -- tend to be college educated, suburban voters and somewhat disappointed with president obama after 2008 but are reluctant to turn over power to the republicans either because they see them as too ideological or tolerant and extreme and by not separating

himself from these sentiments i think romney adds another hurdle for himself with the voters who in the end outside of philadelphia and detroit are the kind he's going to need. checking our top stories now. northern italy on edge this morning after an earthquake kills at least 12 people. several aftershocks have been reported. today's quake was centered in the provence of modana. nine days ago a quake struck killing nine people. we are going to survive this. this is what a father said after the plane slammed in to the mountain. he was right. he and his wife and daughter were injured. immediately after the crash, heather calmly called 911. >> 911, what is your emergency? >> hi, i'm in an airplane and i crashed and i'm in the mountains. >> where are you at, hon? >> in the 29 miles east of -- west of mountain home, idaho.

i need you to send a search party, please. >> they did send a search party but because of the rough terrain and bad weather, it took 15 hours for a chopper to finally rescue them. mexico seeing the own version of the arab spring right now. young voters getting active and feeling empowered. they could help decide who wins mexi mexico's presidential race. we'll have that story. [ kate ] most women may not be properly absorbing the calcium they take because they don't take it with food. switch to citracal maximum plus d. it's the only calcium supplement that can be taken with or without food. that's why my doctor recommends citracal maximum. it's all about absorption. ♪ why do you whisper, green grass? ♪ [ all ] shh!

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now's your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. the question for you, why won't the birther thing die? mitt romney will be benefiting of a big-time fund-raiser today in las vegas. guess who's hosting it? the donald, donald trump. the most famous birther in america. who can forget at the height of his campaign when trump questioned president obama's birthplace? >> barack obama should end this and he should provide the public with a birth certificate and if he doesn't do it, he's doing a tremendous disservice to the public. >> trump harked on that for so long and so hard that president obama finally said, enough, and

showed the long form birth certificate to the nation. not like it really died, just last week arizona's secretary of state apologized for embarrassing the state after threatening to leave the president off the ballot unless hawaii authenticated the birth certificate. in iowa, republicans want candidates to show proof they're natural-born citizens. here's mitt romney come paining with donald trump. >> you know, i don't agree with all the people who support me and my guess is they don't agree with everything i believe in but i need to get 50.1% or more and i'm appreciative to have the help of a lot of good people. >> some republicans are worried, former mccain campaign adviser steve schmidt says, quote, in the middle of the electorate people think it's bats blank crazy. so if those birthers are all for wearing tinfoil hats, why are we still here? talk back question today, why

won't the birther thing die? facebook.com/carolcnn. i'll read your comments later this hour. egypt's presidential run-off is sparking more protests. thousands of protesters called on egyptian courts to disqualifying former pm and others ransacked the campaign headquarters in cairo. he briefly served under the ousted president. he'll face off in the run-off next month. here, though, we were talking about the arab spring. now mexico is having its own more peaceful version. the country elects a president on july 1st and young voters have been using social media to push for change. raphael romo has the mexico spring. >> reporter: it started with a loud protest against the mexican presidential candidate in early may, staged by college students. when the candidate dismissed the

protests and his party called the students infiltratoinfiltra protest went viral. on a video released on social media, the protesters show their student i.d. one by one. when mexican media failed to report the protests, the students again organized on social media and demonstrated at the headquarters of mexican television network. in the following days they took to the streets of mexico city by the thousands. >> translator: we're fed up with the system. we're fed up with the mainstream media that lies to us, manipulates us. we're finally waking up. >> reporter: this kind of political activism had not been seen in mexico since the massacre of 1968 which is commemorated in scenes such as these every year in the capital. government troops shot in to a crowd of unarmed students killing as many as 3,000

demonstrators protesting government repression prior to the olympic games held in mexico city that year. >> translator: this march's object "survivor" a first step to raise our voices and not be silent of what's going on around us. >> reporter: some are even comparing the protests with the arab spring, last year's movement that erupted in the middle east. >> translator: possibly in the same way that in tunz yeah an unemployed man begins the arab spring, we may be at the beginning of a mexican spring. >> reporter: so far, the protests have been peaceful in the mexican government seems to be simp thet toik the students. mexican voting officials say young voters represent about 30% of the electorate. mitt romney says the world is a dangerous place and that u.s. military needs to be built up, not trimmed up.

does this mean we're not as safe with barack obama in the white house? and don't forget if you're heading out the door, watch us any time on the mobile or computer. head to cnn.com/tv. there are a lot of warning lights and sounds vying for your attention. so we invented a warning.. you can feel. introducing the all new cadillac xts, available with the patented safety alert seat. when there is danger you might not see, you're warned by a pulse in the seat. it's technology you won't find in a mercedes e-class. the all new cadillac xts has arrived. and it's bringing the future forward.

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baggage fee, reservation fee, seat assignment fee, security fee. it seems fees on airline tickets keep getting higher and higher. now that tsa wants to double one of those fees. here's lizzie o'leary. >> reporter: take two things many travels love to hate. tsa and ticket fees. add them together. >> what is it that's prompting them to ask for more money. >> reporter: the agency backed by democrats in the senate wants to increase the security fee everyone pays for the ticket. from $2.50 a flight to $5 per one-way ticket.

$10 round trip. >> ten is pushing it to a limit. i mean, i guess it's only $5 more but i'm wondering, you know, how that fits in with the -- they have a budget. >> reporter: the budget of tsa like many in washington is set to be cut and the agency says boosting this fee would help cover the increasing price of security like those costly scanners. the fee hasn't been hiked in ten years. >> straight ahead. >> thank you. >> enjoy your flight. >> reporter: a powerful lobby is pushing against it. airlines. they don't want the cost shifted on to their customers. >> air security is a national security function and something all of us need to be behind as americans and the government should be picking up the cost of that. >> reporter: many travelers we talked to didn't mind. >> it is like using a toll road. if you use the toll road, you pay the toll. >> as long as it makes us secure. >> reporter: they want the know it's money well spent. >> does increasing the fee increase the level of security tsa will provide?

>> it means that tsa's budget will be a little less likely to get cut just to save money in the overall deficit reduction effort. so, in that regard, it's useful. it's also useful if you can tell where the benefits go. for a particular program. then the people who get the benefits generally should pay for it. >> reporter: there's a big political fight over the fee. senate democrats voted to support it. house republicans are dead set against it. they have to figure out how to square the approaches before the tas can be funded. lizzie o'leary, cnn, washington. 28 minutes past the hour. checking the top stories now. northern italy on edge this morning after an earthquake kills at least 12 people. several aftershocks are

reported. nine days ago, a quake struck the same region killed seven people that time. scientists say a radioactive blue fin tu that caught off the coast of california and confi confirmed low levels of radiation from the japan plant that melted down in 2011. scientists say it's safe to eat but they want to test this year's catch to make sure there's no more radiation. political buzz is your rapid fire look at the best political topics of the day. three questions, smart answers. playing with us, radio host, political show on sirius xm radio and a comedian and all around good guy, dominic and chairman of the south carolina republican party, also a good guy, welcome to both of you. >> hey, carol. >> hi. >> welcome. >> okay. first question, if you like the birthers, you will love the transcripters.

last week a website offered a $10,000 reward for president obama's college transcripts raised the bounty to $20,000. last year the most famous birther and mitt romney supporter donald trump wondered how president obama got in to ivy league schools. why hasn't bedistanced himself? >> one of the real issues is donald trump used it as a political ploy to get in to the game and he did a good job at it. i think categorizing mitt romney as using the birther issue probably would be more media driven than it would be anything else. donald trump certainly is a successful businessman. mitt romney, a successful businessman. and the two both certainly donald trump at one time tried to make a run at the presidency. whether that was an advertising stunt or whatever, it worked pretty well for donald trump.

>> pete? >> well, birtherism is a conspiracy theory with no basis in truth whatsoever. the president is, of course, american and makes donald trump a conspiracy theorist and mitt romney is campaigning with donald trump and like president obama campaigning with a 9/11 truther or the believe of mormonism is a cult. it's ridiculous. no basis in truth. the transcripter idea, they're one president too late asking for the transcript of the president but there's going to be some, you know, part of the population always racist and will never believe a guy named bara barack hussein obama is american. >> all right. on to the second question. mitt romney said in a speech in san diego that the world is a dangerous place. let's listen. >> chavez is campaigning for power throughout latin america. mexico is under siege from the cartels and the middle east, the arab spring is an arab winter. the world is not safe.

>> he also talked about the militaries in russia, china and iran's nuclear threat saying the united states needs to build up the military and not make cuts. obama says reductions won't affect security. who's right? is the world a more dangerous place? katon? >> we heard the same song of a president of jimmy carter that we needed to cut our military, spend more money back home and i think the biggest context i think governor romney hit on is china and russia. our president has deferred the space race to them and tremendous amounts of technology and innovation have come from the space programs so right now we have deferred that to china and russia. serious, serious flaw in the president's policy and i think governor romney just started to touch on that. >> pete? >> it's always easy, airline, to point out dangerous parts of the world but as cnn's probably

smartest thinker fared said, terrorism is down 50% since the '90s. 75% to the 5 previous decades. you can always point out a dangerous place. it is dangerous to be a terrorist right now because of this president. i don't know. i guess mitt romney is planning for a military budget anticipates an alien invasion. we spend more than ten countriless after us combined. china is second and one tenth of what we spend. i think we are spending enough on military. of course, unless you have some information that his advisers given him. the architects of the iraq war. mitt romney's policy advisers. that's to be a loser. sorry. >> oh, carol. >> on to the third question. just how we play the game. this is the third question. could this be the kiss of death for the obama campaign? >> budgets mean nothing. nobody knows anything. and everybody's out of work

because the economy's in the dumpster. you need people who are not professors at berkeley assuming political office because they have never run a company and hypothetical and academic are other big words but the only people that create jobs are business men and business women. >> okay. so gene simmons of kiss, he voted for mr. obama in 2008 but he sounds like a romney guy this time around and not committed to either candidate, though. which kiss song makes the best campaign song for romney and obama? this is our fun question. katon? >> well, carol, one thing i'm not exactly a kiss follower but i can say that the president stuck his tongue out at the center right country for the last three years and i would say more probably a queen song would probably be a better song for mitt romney and another one b t bites the dust. >> i'll take that! pete? >> you know, this is -- i'm not really a big kiss fan either.

that is tough question for both katon and i. i don't think we should trust someone that wore clown makeup for both of their careers. on their advice to the president. if anybody can name more than one song -- i'd ask them to listen to the album all the way through. i'm not a huge fan. i don't know that any of their songs represent anything and i couldn't find it within myself to look one up. i'm sorry. >> it's okay. i understand. >> kiss? >> i have one for the president's and the president's would be i did it my way or axelrod's way or the best days are yet to come and he has to prove both of them. >> i love i did it axelrod's way. >> thanks so much! >> thanks, carol. first lady michelle obama on a tv tear. this morning on "good morning america" and "the view" and then on to the "the daily show"

tonight and talking about gr growing gardens and healthier kids. she did mention the new book "american grown" and the let's move initiative to fight childhood obesity. >> let's move is a way of giving people the tools and information and it really requires everybody to step up. we need the mayors stepping up. restructuring cities so that kids have safer places to play. we need our food manufacturers stepping up and really thinking about how to reform late food products so that they're a little more healthy. >> and affordable. >> and affordable. >> mrs. obama also gave an interview to "people" magazine telling the world intimate details of the president's nighttime rituals saying, quote, we have a ritual where the president tucks me in. i'm usually in bed before anybody. he'll come in and turn the lights out and give me a kiss. he's like, ready to be tucked? i'm like, yes i am. end quote. are you a fan of the king?

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madonna is going after lady gaga again. during a rehearsal, madonna covered a gaga song. "showbiz tonight's" a.j. hammer has the video and the music. tell us.

>> well, carol, i'm a huge gaga fan. i love her song "born this way" and hard not to consider it reminiscent of madonna's classic "express yourself" and looking at the video shot in a rehearsal in tel aviv, you can see madonna sees the similarity, as well. let's take a look. ♪ ♪ i was born this way ♪ i'm on the right track baby ♪ i was born this way ♪ express yourself >> well, you can see madonna is enjoying herself. i thought it was cool but judging by the fact that she finished the song singing "she's not me" it was done as a dig. we don't know if that's just madonna riffing in the sound check, carol, or part of the show out in the theater but,

again, madonna's got people talking and that is something he she's been the one annual only master at. >> the sounds sound so similar, it's amazing. let's talk about elvis' crypt. this is just weird. >> it's weird but there's a fan loving the idea of this. one person could soon own the place that served as elvis presley's first but not final resting place. the final resting place, of course, is on his graceland estate and according to the people who are auctioning off elvis's crypt, while the state of tennessee deciding whether or not to allow a burial on a private estate, elvis and his mother entured at this crypt and ever since they were moved to grace labd, the tomb is left empty. it has a statue commemorating the time there and starting next month, you can own it. julian auctions of beverly hills will have the sale and the lot up for auction includes the original crypt, the chance to open and close the vault and crypt for burial an inscription

and the use of a small budding chapel for service. bids for the crypt start around $100,000, carol. and yeah, that does sound crazy but there's got to be a huge elvis fan out there who's just hoping that will be their final resting place. imagine. >> $100,000. wow. you're probably right. >> i want to see where it goes. >> me, too. a.j. hammer, thank you. want information on everything breaking in the entertainment world? a.j. has it tonight on "showbiz tonight" at 11:00 p.m. eastern on hln. the same group that said men should not get regular prostate screenings has new guidelines for women. could this stir up a new debate in the medical community? that's next. [ pilot ] flying teaches me to prepare for turbulence.

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america's natural gas... domestic, abundant, clean energy to power our lives... that's smarter power today. 45 minutes past the hour. checking the top stories. northern italy on aenlg of an earthquake kills at least 12 people. today's quake was centered in the provence of modana. nine days ago, a quake struck the same region, killed seven people that time. mitt romney is not backing down from the decision to attend a vegas fund-raiser hosted by donald trump even though the mogul won't let go of the idea that president obama is a birther. when asked about it, romney says he's grateful for all of his supporters and doesn't agree with all of them but quote i need 50.1%. home prices hit new lows.

average prices went down 2.6% compared to a year ago. the report found home prices are at lows we haven't seen since mid-2002. overall, down 35% from the peak back in 2006. in today's daily dose, the same government task force that recommended men not get regular prostate screenings and told women in the 40s to hold off on mammograms is updating the recommendations on hormone replacement therapy for menopausal women. elizabeth cohen is here to explain. >> this is less controversial. i think they get less grief for this recommendation. because what they're saying is what a lot of doctors are saying. used to be years ago women were told to take replacement therapy to keep you forever young. you won't get heart disease or dementia. we found out that wasn't true and the group is updating and reflecting on that. and saying, don't take hormone

replacement therapy if you think that it's going to keep you from getting things like heart disease and the reason is it won't. number two, it puts you at risk for all sorts of terrible things including stroke, dementia, deep vein thom bo sis. gallbladder disease. when you're on hormone replacement therapy for a relatively long period of time, you increase the risk of those. so be careful. >> as we all know, women are desperate to, you know, calm the symptoms of menopause. i know women are still taking this. >> right. >> should they? is there a benefit at all? >> yes. there is a situation where you might want to talk to your doctor about hormone replacement therapy and this is it. forget the notion to keep you forever young. that's not a good reason to take it. but if you're having a hard time with the symptoms of menopause like hot flashes and you want to take hormone replacement therapy for a short period of time and a low dose, a lot of doctors will say, let's try it.

let's see if it works. if your hot flashes are so bad you can't function or work or do what you need to do, taking a low dose for a short period of time might be the right thing for you. go to cnn.com/empoweredpatient we have advice for the hormone replacement therapy question. >> thanks, elizabeth. >> thanks. a love affair of nearly 65 years and queen elizabeth prepares for the diamond jubilee, also marking her wedding anniversary to prince phillip. the queen's first cousin remembers the couple's beginnings. [ female announcer ] did you know the average person smiles more than 50 times a day? so brighten your smile a healthy way with listerine® whitening plus restoring rinse. it's the only rinse that makes your teeth two shades whiter and two times stronger. ♪ listerine® whitening... power to your mouth.

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queen elizabeth ii's diamond

jubilee is this weekend. she's ruled the royal family for 60 years and the only person that's been the -- only person by her side the entire time is her husband, prince filip. we have a look inside their royal romance. ♪ >> reporter: it's a love affair that's lasted more than six decades. as queen elizabeth celebrates her diamond jubilee, she's reached another milestone. 65 years of marriage. ♪ this is the windsor estate. the queen's weekend boat home and where the first cousin and close friend margaret rhodes lives. a childhood companion to the queen, she was a bridesmaid at her weding and is in no doubt that it was a marriage based on love. >> i think she fell in love when she was 13. god, he was good looking. you know? he was a viking god.

she never looked at anybody else, ever. and i think he married -- truly been a rock. >> reporter: the couple married in westminster abby on november 20th, 1947. since then, prince filip is an almost constant presence at the queen's side. if this companionship came at a personal price, it was one that he was prepared to pay. >> just to have been there all the time behind her and really to sacrificed his life, he did it, too. sacrificed his life. i think he would have loved to gone in the navy and made a career out of that. so he -- he sacrificed, too. and so, i think it's made for a wonderful, solid marriage. >> reporter: the queen and prince filip met before the second world war when he was a young naval cadet. >> number one job from the word go has been to, quote, support

the queen. everything he does is in support of the queen. and it's just been one of the great royal romances i think of history. people talk about victoria and albert as a phrase trips off the tongue and i have no doubt people will talk about elizabeth and filip in the same way. >> reporter: this year, as part of the diamond jub lee celebrations, the queen is touring the uk and with her, the handsome prince she met as a shy teenager. the man who today is always with her. max foster, cnn, windsor, england. >> and you can watch the celebrations marking 60 years of queen elizabeth's reign here on cnn. this is a live look from craig, colorado. republican presidential candidate mitt romney will speak here in a few minutes before heading to las vegas and there he'll attend a fund-raiser hosted by donald trump who as

you know questioned where president obama was born. hence, the talk back question today. why won't the birther thing die? your responses next. we're here at walmart with the burtons, who love movies. let me show you something new. come on. walmart can now convert your favorite dvds from disc to digital. so you can watch them on your laptop, tablet, phone... anytime, anywhere. cool, huh? yea! yea! what'd you guys think that it would cost? i thought it'd be around $10. it's only $2 per disc. that's a great price. bring in your favorite dvds. see for yourself. boooom! [ host ] that's the walmart entertainment disc to digital service. visit the photo center at your local walmart to get started. that's my favorite part.

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and is. the virginia girl youngest ever to qualify for the national spelling bee, going up against kids twice her age but to her it's no big deal. >> honestly, it's not as big and i'm not really excited like -- i'm going to national spelling bee. i'm more like, it's fine. i went to be an astro biologist because i like astronomy and biology and aiming to be in the swimming part of the olympics. >> oh, but first things first, the spelling bee begins today. those cubs fans and goat wrigley reached chicago. with two missions, they walked across the country with the goat and raised money for cancer research and break the curse of the cubs. a tavern owner was thrown out in 1945 at the world series because he brought the goat in to the game and people complaining about the stinky pet goat. the tavern owner said they would

never win another world series and they have not since. now these modern-day cub fans think the pet goat wrigley will reverse the curse. >> it's about respecting the goat and it's the hike is 2,000 miles but, you know, raising money for cancer research and letting the goat see all the different parts of the country, like route 66, the goat's helped us raise over $20,000. close to $25,000 now and the cubs are going to make a donation today so to me that's respecting the goat and i think that's part of the curse, not respecting the goat. >> looks like a very clean and calm goat, kyra phillips is back there laughing. >> the line of the day, respect the goat. >> respect the goat. we'll see if officials let the goat in to wrigley field. wrigley at quigley. that would be cool. time for the talk back answers. why won't the birther thing die? because people won't accept the fact that obama is black.

they'll always find something to question him about. it took too long for president obama to decide to produce the document that many people believe is a forgery. this from michael. let's face it. it was never about the facts. it was about racism or in the donald's case an opportunity to make hay on the backs of racists. as long as there are bigots and gutless news reporters who fail to call it out, we will have the birther issue to deal with. i'm beginning to wonder if the democrats let it go on and on and on just to demonstrate how crazy the republicans can be. continue the conversation. i'm carol costello. thank you for joining me. "cnn newsroom" continues right now with kyra phillips. >> 11:00 on the east coast. 8:00 on the west. it's a big day for mitt romney. voters in texas pushing him past the finish line in the race for delegates but not in texas today. he is in colorado. craig, colo